This invention relates to the maximization of functions and characters to be initiated or generated from a keyboard without increasing the number of keys, more specifically, the automatic entry of user entered command strings in association with otherwise unassigned softkeys to facilitate subsequent entry of the same command string by means of the softkey to which it was assigned.
Softkeys have been incorporated into computer terminals in an effort to minimize the number of keys on the keyboard while increasing the number of functions which the keyboard can perform. A typical machine which utilizes softkeys is menu driven. As the user selects the desired menu, usually via a start-up menu, one or more of the softkeys are labeled on the CRT for the function which will be performed when that key is depressed.
The most common number of softkeys on a terminal keyboard is eight, however, several machines currently on the market have many times that number. Often terminals having only eight softkeys will have numerous keys within each menu which are blank and not "hard-wired" by the program to perform a preselected function.
In many situations a user may have to enter a string of characters in response to a prompt from the program which he is utilizing. Additionally, in some situations, the string which the user must enter is an alphanumeric string which is not a standard english word. Thus, the user must double-check the string before the entry is made by pressing "RETURN" or another appropriate key. Further, it is necessary in some situations to have to reenter the same string at numerous times, e.g. in a computer aided design situation. The necessity of repeatedly entering the same complex string greatly increases the possibility of errors.
To make maximum use of the softkeyes and to increase user convenience by reducing the possibility of errors, it would be advantageous to have a system which automatically assigns user entered strings to an available softkey within that menu. This would then allow the subsequent reentry of the string by depressing that softkey. Further, it would be advantageous to have a system which updates the user entered strings stored in the softkey memory each time the user actuates one of those keys, or explicitly enters a new string, so that only the most current and most often used strings are stored in the available softkey memory for the menu. It is believed that the present invention embodies such a system.